Twisty

ABSTRACT

“The Twisty” is an improved and gentler hair accessory for people who wish to gather their afro/coily textured micro, small and standard sized locs and loose afro into a ponytail, pigtail or headband without the use of elastics and plastics found in many traditional hair accessories that can fray this hair type. The Twisty compromises of 4 to 6 chenille stems braided lengthwise into one long stem (10 inches (short version) or 34 inches (long version) with each opposite end sealed to prevent the metal ends from poking out and fraying the fabric sleeve. That braided chenille stem is then sewn into a thin fabric sleeve ensuring that the ends do not poke out. The Twisty can then be looped from the front or back around any section of locs then twisted at the base once or twice to grip the locs without knotting the Twisty.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Technical Field

The present invention is an improved and gentler way to secure micro,small and standard hair locs and loose afro without the damage that theelastics and plastics used in traditional ponytail holders likescrunchies, hair elastics, bubble ponytail holders i.e and others can doto this hair type. Locs are gripped with the Twisty, a beautiful sleevefabric ponytail/pigtail/headband holder. Users can secure their locswith the Twisty without fear of loc or hair breakage.

2. Description of Related Art

The hair accessory gives wearers of micro, small and standard hair locsand loose afro the option of wearing their locs in ponytails, pigtailsand headband with a thin beautiful fabric sleeve referred to as “TheTwisty.” Used to give hairstyle decorative options besides wearing thelocs down and keeps the locs out of the face as they grow longer andprevents loc breakage while using the hair product.

Traditional ponytail holders on the market are typically made ofelastic, plastic, velcro, rubber, synthetic bands and some are coveredby cloth (scrunchies i.e) in order to secure a ponytail, pigtail or hairoff the face hairstyle. However, while the traditional hair accessoriesmay work well for people who have straight textured hair types, it doesnot work well for people with afro/coily textured hair especially thosewho wear micro, small and standard sized locs or wear loose afro as thishair texture is easily prone to fraying and breakage with the wrong hairaccessories. Traditional hair elastics and hair accessories can weakenlocs and hairlines because of the tension needed to grip the locs in acertain way. Many of these traditional hair accessories and hair tiesmay be pretty and have an elegant finishing, however these products arenot widely tested on people who have afro/coily textured locs orafro/coily loose natural hair. In addition, people with small, micro andstandard sized locs want options besides wearing their hair down dailyor may want to wear their hair off their face for work, fashion, specialoccasions, sports or convenience. Traditional scrunchies and ponytailholders can either over time weaken and cause breakage to locs or causea massive amount of breakage even after one day of usage because many ofthese hair accessories are not designed to hold the bulk of locs orsupport afro/coily-textured hair. Some hair accessories on the marketfor locs are geared towards those who have bulkier and freeform locsthat can handle a bit more weight however this is not the case formicro, small and traditional sized locs that require carefully handlingespecially when wet or pulled into an updo or hair style. Even those whowear thicker bulkier and freeform locs must be mindful that many of thepresent traditional hairties on the market can eat away at their locs.People with locs also like to use hair accessories that adorn the hairin an attractive manner and not put lint onto their locs.

Many who wear the traditional hair elastics and scrunchies and have locshave to double them (double helix style) in order to hold the bulk ofthe locs which can cause severe damage that cannot be fixed once thehair follicles are pulled too tight. Unlike the traditional scrunchiesor ponytail holders which have a permanent O shape or the shape of anhorizontal 8 like the traditional bubble ponytail holders, the Twisty isstraight and can be manipulated into an O shape to create a loop aroundthe locs and a twist or two at the base of the Twisty to hold it intoplace. With the Crown Act so far enacted in 13 US States and 29Municipalities (with more expected), many people of afro descent are nowfree to wear their natural hair in office settings and therefore thepopularity of locs has grown. The Twisty is a game changer in the hairmarket allowing women, children and men with locs to access hairaccessories that are gentler to their hair without fear of breakage andthe ability to wear various trendy hair styles and also keep their hairin a professional look especially for those who work in industries thatthey are expected to wear their hair off their face. This hair accessoryis great for locs of any length. The user may wear several Twisty'sdepending on the look they are trying to achieve. The Twisty also comesin two lengths (10 inches & 34 inches) and various widths (which will beexplored but for now 4 to 6 chenille stems), various fabric colors anddecorations (bows/ribbons/flowers).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, the Twisty is a hair accessory madeof chenille stems (four to six pieces) that are braided together tocreate one stem with each opposite end bonded (to prevent it fromfraying the fabric sleeve at the ends), then that braided chenille stemis sewn into a thin fabric sleeve, however the twisty isn't sewn into aO shape. The Twisty when completed will be in a straight shape, howeverwill end up curving naturally. The user will take the Twisty and loop itaround from the front or back (depending on their preference) a sectionof their locs to create a ponytail, pigtail or headband look and thetwist the base to secure in place. To keep the Twisty clean one canrinse the Twisty into a mixture of cold water and liquid soap for about20 minutes, rinse off with cold water and then air dry only (do notmachine dry). The Twisty is reusable, however one may buy multiplecolors and lengths to color coordinate with their wardrobe and havemultiple hairstyle options.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The novel features believed characteristic of the invention are setforth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well asa preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, willbe best understood by reference to the following detailed description ofillustrative embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanyingblack and white drawings showing the alternative ways to wear the hairinvention (Twisty) wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the hair accessory ofthe present invention shown as it can be worn;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the hairaccessory of the present invention as it can be worn;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of the hair accessoryof the present invention as it can be worn into a side pigtail with aribbon adornment;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a fourth embodiment of the hairaccessory of the present invention as it can be worn;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a fifth embodiment of the hair accessoryof the present invention as it can be worn;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a sixth embodiment of the hair accessoryof the present invention as it can be worn turned into a headband withthe back, sides and front of locs lifted by the present invention andthe front portions are twisted up from the front then turned into a bow;

FIG. 7 is another close up view of the invention untwisted;

FIG. 8 is another close up view of the invention untwisted;

FIG. 9 is a close up view of the invention 34 inches/headband styleuntwisted;

FIG. 10 is a close up view of the invention twisted at the ends;

FIG. 11 is a close up view of the invention twisted at the ends;

FIG. 12 is a close up view of the invention with a bow added;

1. The Twisty is an improved and gentler hair accessory that allowswearers of micro, small and standard sized hair locs to gather theirafro locs and loose natural into a ponytail (side, front, back),pigtails or off their face (headband). The Twisty comprises of four tosix chenille stems braided into one big stem from 10 inches (shortversion) to 34 inches (long version); sealing the ends of the thatbraided chenille stem (to prevent the ends of poking out and fraying theends of fabric sleeve) sewing that chenille stem into a thin fabricsleeve. When completed the Twisty will have a straight appearance thatcan be shaped into a curve. Wherein the Twisty can then be looped (fromthe front or back) into a section of the locs and twisted at the base tosecure the Twisty into place. The Twisty is washable and reusable. 2.The Twisty of claim 1 wherein said comprises of four to six chenillestems braided into one stem (two lengths: 10 inches and 34 inches) 3.The Twisty of claim 1 wherein said comprises of a thin fabric sleevesurrounding the braided chenille stem
 4. A method of creating a hairaccessory using four to six chenille stems (depending on thickness) sewninto a thin fabric sleeve with the opposite ends of the fabric sleevealso bonded or sewn together to prevent the ends from sticking out ofthe sleeve with the intention of holding the chenille stems into placewith the fabric sleeve.
 5. A method of looping a section of locs into anon elastic ponytail, pigtail and/or headband holder and securing theTwisty to the locs and then twisting the base of two ends together tothe desired tension thus keeping the style in place without slippage ordamage.
 6. A method for using chenille stems encased or sewn into a thinfabric sleeve, said method comprising of steps a) braiding four to sixchenille stems into one big stem b) sealing the very ends of thechenille stems so the metal ends don't poke out c) sewing the braidedchenille stem into a thin fabric sleeve ensuring all sides are secureand nothing is sticking out from the opposite ends e) taking the Twistyfrom the front or back and securing it around a section of locs f)Taking the two base ends of the Twisty and twisting them together onceor twice from the base to secure the hair accessory to the desiredtension point g) simply untwist the base ends to undo the Twisty.Depending on the hairstyle, the user can wear one or more Twisty's. TheTwisty is washable, reusable and the fabric sleeve is permanent.